Gongda Yan： Reflections on Contemporary Calligraphy Culture
editorial comment/noteThis article is selected from the collection of "2019 China Higher Calligraphy Education Forum". From the artistic creation of contemporary young and middle-aged calligraphers, it comprehensively combs the basic situation and characteristics of the calligraphy world, the existing "common faults" and the remedies for rectification, so as to comprehensively expound the current calligraphy ecology, the aesthetic way of contemporary creation and the promotion of Chinese aesthetic education spirit, and make clear the direction from the philosophical speculation of art to complete the task of creative transformation and innovative development.
Creativity and gains and losses — — Discussion on the Artistic Creation of the Book Circle at Present
With the 40 years’ reform and opening-up in China, today’s book world has seen a scene of all-round prosperity, and it has also trained a group of elite talents. They are self-confident, mature and enterprising! In the history of China’s calligraphy, this is undoubtedly a special cultural phenomenon. Young and middle-aged calligraphers in today’s book world have been tempered and become the main force in today’s book world. They are energetic in artistic creation, active in aesthetic thinking, rich in integration orientation, solid in traditional pen and ink, and novel in form creation … … The broad vision and multi-dimensional perspective confirm that they are explorers and practitioners who are heading for the ideal world in today’s noisy and complicated book craze. In a certain sense, it can be said that the artistic practice of this generation of young and middle-aged calligraphers has made today’s China book world richer and more energetic. To sum up, the artistic creation of today’s book world presents four characteristics:
The first is the call for the return of tradition.Whether it is the study of calligraphy, the study of steles or the integration of steles, the China calligraphy circle has gradually moved towards stability and health in the past forty years. Multi-approach and colorful unity, whether it is the style of two kings, the style of Ming and Qing dynasties, the style of bamboo slips and so on, are all a return to tradition. Returning to tradition is not copying tradition. Many works in previous national exhibitions have shown a strong style of personalized artistic language symbols on the basis of tradition, highlighting the cultural concept of advancing with the times in contemporary art exploration, which is the main theme in today’s life aesthetics.
The second is the degree of form innovation.Needless to say, the exhibition era needs the diversification and richness of the exhibition forms of calligraphers’ works. With the opening of society and the diversification of aesthetic ideas, the space art of calligraphy has added the fashionable color of plane composition, which is the inevitable aesthetic demand of the public today. Once upon a time, due to the multi-layer effect of social fast food culture and fashion pursuit, fresh, exciting and colorful "surreal" and "ancient relics" filled all kinds of national book fairs, which seemed to have become the established custom of visual effect adjustment in the exhibition hall conduction space … … With the passage of time and the deepening of professional artistic creation, the works of the national exhibition have gradually moved towards simplicity and nature, and returned to the true nature of the natural writing of Chinese characters.
The third is the strengthening of freehand brushwork poetry.The extension of calligraphy, the pursuit of interest, personalized creation, boldness, agitation, publicity and unrestrained … … It embodies the mainstream style of aesthetic feelings in the current book world. At the same time, with the complementarity, reference and integration in the inheritance of calligraphy, all kinds of freehand brushwork styles with strong personality consciousness are gradually formed. Regular script is integrated into the meaning; Borrowing from seal to grass; The cursive script (big grass) structure is open and closed; The cursive script is interactive and gradual; The effective exploration, the transformation of ideas and the birth of interest have become the remarkable characteristics of young and middle-aged calligraphy creation today.
The fourth is the improvement of humanistic quality.A gratifying phenomenon is that many authors have gone far beyond the single calligraphy skill training and entered the in-depth study of Chinese traditional poetry. The phenomenon of the author’s self-written poems and the in-depth study of ancient calligraphy theory presented in various exhibitions indicates the comprehensiveness of calligrapher’s cultivation.
It is true that we must face up to all kinds of problems and tendencies in contemporary exhibition works. This is the "common fault" in China’s calligraphy creation at present. In short, I think there are four aspects that must be paid attention to:
First, despise brushwork. The calligraphy theories of past dynasties have strict and high standards for using pen and ink. As an internal form of calligraphy, brushwork is the most important. Some works in all kinds of exhibitions in China pay more attention to form than connotation; Pay more attention to interest than line quality. The brushwork is arbitrary and the brush array is mixed. For example, the seal script is out of balance and the loan is improper. According to Liu Xizai’s "A Brief Introduction to Art", reverse entry, astringency and tightness are the keys to writing. When writing seal script, the word "astringent" is often ignored, and the brush is dragged along the stroke, not to mention wrapping the front and turning it around, which goes against the trend. The big grass is to make the degree of transition and the actual situation suitable. If you don’t know how to use a pen, you will often open and close the switch casually, resulting in exaggerated spatial layout. The midline is thin and erratic, and the reality is improper. Confuse the brushwork of big grass and small grass, and get lost in the unconscious state. Ou Yangxun’s "On the Use of Pen" "The experience of using a pen by a husband must be hooked and glued, and the ladder will not be wasted, so there must be a reason. Wandering and pitching, tolerance and airflow. " Dong Qichang’s "Essays on Painting a Zen Room", "Where you send a pen, you must be able to raise it and not let it suppress itself … … If you don’t trust the pen, you will have a master at every turn. The word "turn" and "beam" is a clever tactic for calligraphers. Today’s people are only masters of the pen, and they have never carried a pen. " Liu Xizai’s "An Outline of Art and Books" "The calligrapher is in agreement with the word" press ",but there is no separation. Therefore, it is necessary to lift the pen when it is heavy, and press it when it is light, so as to avoid falling and drifting. " These classic book theories of the ancients,How important it will be to today’s calligraphy art creation! We can see that in the exhibition, some cursive works are full of papers and clouds, full of romantic ideas, and the brushwork is mixed. Even Lian Bi didn’t mention it, so they just dragged their feet. In addition, the "twisting" in the calligraphy style is different from the pen tip. The writing style of small characters is used to write large characters casually, and the linearity of small characters is used to replace the linearity of large characters. This phenomenon is more prominent in many works. It should be said that the art of calligraphy needs form and pays attention to momentum, but it is also based on linear essence.
Second, the ink is single. As the ancient saying goes, "Calligraphy is only difficult to reach with charm", and its key lies in the richness and variability of pen and ink. At present, there are many people who neglect to use ink in calligraphy, especially in the creation of seal script, and the ink is generally too solid, and even the ink method has not changed throughout. "Where there is power in the dark, there is not enough time in the white" is the critical remark made by Mr. Huang Binhong when he first met Lin Sanzhi at the age of 32. The method of using ink is thick, light, moist, thirsty and white. Its main point is that "with dryness, it will be moist, and it will be dry" (Sun Guoting’s Book Spectrum). With dryness, it will be moist, and with concentration, it will show its strength. In the brushwork, it will show ink colors and ink tones and enhance the artistic expression of calligraphy. I am eager to live, but I am eager to be gorgeous. I am eager to take risks, and I know how to keep black. At present, many calligraphers’ ideas have not broken through the barriers of epigraphy in the Qing Dynasty, and they have inherited the habit of using ink in the Qing Dynasty, and they are not good at and dare not use thirsty ink. "Dry front, namely thirsty pen. The calligrapher’s double pipe has the word "dry pen", which is totally different. If you are thirsty, you will not be moist, and if you are dry, you will die. " (Liang Tongshu’s "On the Book of Polo Temple") The way to thirst for ink is to use water. "The cleverness of operation lies in one heart", the thirsty pen uses less ink, the astringent pen is retrograde, and it is vigorous and vigorous, writing out the white silk in the stippling. In the application of thirsty ink, it is often inseparable from astringent pen. The pen is awkward, the mistake is difficult, and there is something left in the line. Cai Yong’s "Nine Potential" said, "The astringent potential lies in the tight method of fighting.The ancients said, "If you support a water boat, you will try your best to stay where you are.". Mr. Lin Sanzhi put it well in Talking about Art — — "Huai Su can seek a pen without ink, and write embellish in dry pen, and the bones and muscles are among them." "The monument depends on the blank space" and "seek cleanliness in chaos, and distinguish between black and white". He also said: "The most difficult thing to change from rigidity to softness in the Book Score is to write insect-eaten lines, and the strokes are like insects." Hiding the show in the sky is really pale. Our era today is neither in the Qing Dynasty nor in the Tang Dynasty. I thought today was an era of freehand brushwork and fiction. Zhuangzi’s "emptiness", "quietness" and "clearness" and Laozi’s "striving for emptiness, keeping quietness and fidelity" also require us to realize today that a good work must emphasize emptiness, not reality.
Third, the gas cell drops. Calligraphy is most bookish. The ancients often warned future generations with the words "calligraphy and painting should be viewed as rhyme" and "the calligrapher’s pen is precious". "Vivid charm" is the first of Sheikh’s "six laws". Guo Ruoxu commented in the Northern Song Dynasty that "the six laws are refined, and it is not easy to last forever". Qi and rhyme have always been the philosophical speculation of China’s calligraphy art and the main theme of his calligraphy creation. At present, the problem is to oppose charm and form, pay attention to stippling skills and ignore breath rhyme. Or the form is exaggerated too much, or the artistic realm is degraded by pursuing the superficial interest of pen and ink too much. We can see that many works in various exhibitions emphasize publicity, lose purity, blindly pursue individual style and ignore the artistic character of the works. As a result, the book is familiar and the weather is weak. Zhao Huanguang commented in "Cold Mountain Broom Talk" that "the article is based on the system and the sound is the tone; The style of writing is the case, and the front is the tone. If it is not ancient, it will be vulgar, and if it is not rhymed, it will be wild. " This just proves that all literature and art take Qi as the most important. "The ancient quality of this article also, the base quality and your article. Writing is easy to change, which is in line with deep feelings. Those who are qualitative are like classics, and those who are literate are like weft. If Zhong and Zhang are branches and two kings are Chinese leaves, beauty is beautiful … …” (Zhang Huaiguan’s "Six-body Calligraphy Theory") Pen and ink skills are rooted in subjective feelings. Pen and ink is the mind of writing people, although it comes from the hand, it is rooted in the heart.The ancients commented "… … I am full of meanness, and I am at ease. I feel sorry for my feelings. How can I rush to the God of Mu? " Therefore, only when the heart is mellow can the pen be harmonious, and only when the mind is aware can the pen be hot.
Fourth, the innovation is superficial. "Change" is the basic law of China’s calligraphy development. Today, the survival significance of calligraphy has changed from practical value to artistic function. The original "daily writing" of calligraphy has become "artistic appreciation". Therefore, today’s calligraphy should be based on artistry, not only linear schema, but also the appeal of humanistic spirit. We advocate "natural writing", which means to express a high degree of artistry in accordance with artistic laws and theories, aesthetic elements and laws. Taking Mr. Lin Sanzhi as an example, he stated in "Self-Narration" that his cursive script "takes two kings as the mantle, Huai Su as the ancestor, Wang Juesi as the friend, Zhu Xizhe and Dong Xiangguang as the guests". We can see that Lin Lao’s creation entered the realm of transformation in his later years. Appreciating his cursive works when he was 90 years old, he showed a scene of turning long into short, making a living from maturity, turning a circle into a square, turning a connection into a break, turning complexity into simplicity, and turning reality into emptiness. It can be seen that it is not easy to change the times of calligraphy. It is not a single form change, but a transformation of the essence and the elevation of the spirit. At present, some works in the exhibition show off their skills one-sidedly, learn from the ancient and superficial, and take a superficial approach. "Innovation" is only a superficial visual effect. From writing to painting, we only seek the prominence of personality style, the publicity of modern consciousness, the exaggeration of form and the neglect of essence; Or on the basis of an ancient calligrapher’s style, enlarge the fine brushwork into a large-character paradigm and change the form.As a result, the lines are stiff and wavy, the ink is dignified and there is no real or false care, and the charm of the works is insufficient, which obviously lacks vitality and vitality. I think that the artistic innovation of an era must organically integrate the traditional characteristics, the characteristics of the times and the characteristics of individuality, and rationally verify the aesthetic characteristics of calligraphy art with China’s traditional philosophy, so as to complete the construction of personal artistic style.
To sum up, the current calligraphy art creation must deal with the triple relationship, namely: the persistence of tradition and the promotion of modernity; Strengthening of skill and poetic expression; The variety of forms and the attention to the essence. The social aesthetics of "the person with strong spirit comes first, and the person with beautiful function comes second" will be strengthened in the life aesthetics in the new period. This is the cultural spirit of "style and feelings are the first, technique is the second", which will be further paid attention to.
Burst and loss — — Thoughts on the current calligraphy ecology
In the past 40 years of reform and opening up, China’s calligraphy has experienced a period of exploration and development from traditional study art to public display space; It has experienced a stable and deepening period from the pursuit of artistic visual form to the modern transformation of classic techniques; It also went through the period of cultural thinking when artistic creation thought pursued to the integration of form and content. This course just proves that calligraphy art, like other national arts, is a part of the aesthetics of popular cultural life. With the advancement of reform and opening up, the art of calligraphy is constantly evolving and improving with the evolution of social ecology and the demands of people’s spiritual world.
Forty years of "calligraphy craze" has contributed to the mass calligraphy movement that has never been seen before in the history of China, reflecting the mass psychology and aesthetic pursuit carried by contemporary culture since the reform and opening up, and expressing the "road map" that the mainstream culture of contemporary calligraphy will inevitably advance. This has painted an extremely splendid page for the contemporary culture of China! However, it goes without saying that in the period of social transformation with rapid economic development and great changes in people’s life forms, our nation did not construct the cultural ideal of the times in advance or at the same time, resulting in the alienation of social value judgment and behavior orientation into the standard of "time is money", while the ultimate direction of cultural value and cultural creation fell to the price index.
It should be noted that the 40-year contemporary "calligraphy craze" has undoubtedly brought about the prosperity of mass culture and the inheritance of national lifestyle, but also brought about the diversity of values and the search for leisure interests. It is manifested in the shift of some national cultural positions of calligraphy, the subversion of traditional artistic value system and the lack of aesthetic judgment standards.
Over the years, there are also various unsatisfactory places in contemporary book circles: impetuous mentality, flashy art, grandiose form, superficial comments and superficial communication. The artistic fashion is clamoring, the creative spirit is mediocre, the classic calligraphy is alienated, and the core values are stolen … … In the pervasion of the utilitarian consumer market, which is characterized by diverse social patterns but so homogeneous, the poverty of philosophy, the lack of culture, the pallor of thoughts and the danger of the traditional lifeline being connected and broken are approaching us at all times … … All kinds of phenomena embodied in artistic creation, such as the supremacy of form, the phenomenon of "ugly books", the expansion of customs and the aphasia of criticism, give the majority of calligraphers a wake-up call and reflection!
Then, the fundamental reason why calligraphy spreads these phenomena is the imbalance of social and cultural ecology.
Since the reform and opening up, contemporary calligraphy has entered an unprecedented artistic and historical transition period from inheritance to innovation, and also faced a secular generalization period of social and cultural ecological crisis and loss of humanistic spirit under the vigorous development of market economy. When we look back at the colorful history of contemporary calligraphy today, we can’t help sighing for the promotion of the two levels, with mixed feelings. The collision of various artistic trends of thought and the dispute of schools have made calligraphers of all walks of life step into the wrestling field of artistic innovation and change with great energy, and explore and analyze the track of the evolution and development of wave after wave of calligraphy style … … Such a noisy book world is rich and varied, vivid and vulgar. East and west, conservative and innovative, all kinds of ideas meet and collide with each other. In the vanity fair of social and economic transformation, impetuousness and shallowness, eagerness and urgency often make people feel confused and helpless in the interweaving of multicultural ideas! People can’t help questioning again and again: Have we lost our introspection and awe about tradition, and lost our responsibility and prospect about the times?
It is true that from the historical point of view, the forty-year "calligraphy craze" has provided such rich dramatic changes and intriguing cultural thinking for contemporary social art. Isn’t this the joy and loss anxiety of a win-win situation with social development in the "natural growth period" of today’s book world?
"Lost anxiety" is unavoidable! On September 30th, 2009, China’s calligraphy China seal cutting was successfully applied for, and the national calligraphy craze rose again, which is undoubtedly a good thing. "National Calligraphy" has brought great impetus and prosperity to the study, communication, popularization and dissemination of traditional calligraphy art, won a broad social space for calligraphy as the inheritance of the Chinese people’s lifestyle for thousands of years, and demonstrated the spiritual appeal of mass life aesthetics for the return of traditional culture.
However, we can’t help but seriously reflect on the essence and trend of this "socialization" from the many works of "national calligraphy" exhibition, dissemination and even transaction — — The first is the generalization of artistic ontology. It shows contempt for classics, giving up the basics, vulgarizing and inheriting, crude imitation, deviating from the law of artistic creation, and lacking the spirit of great country craftsmen. Calligraphy exhibition only seeks to publicize the prosperous landscape in the noisy downtown. The manufacturability replaces the purity of traditional natural writing. The second is the generalization of creative mentality. People are no longer calm and indifferent, but they are used to competing to express themselves in the heat wave of calligraphy display, auctioning "achievements", packaging and dressing up, and publicizing their individuality. Impetuousness and urgency, superficial fame and small profits … … In the traditional sense, the aesthetic of elegance and quietness has been eliminated by socialization. The third is the generalization of cultural values. Art speaks by height. We need width, but we need depth and height more. The "prosperity" of virtual fire’s national calligraphy can only bring us profound lessons! History does not allow to confuse calligraphy with non-calligraphy in the generalization of social art.
When we look back many years ago, when the situation of "socialization" spread rapidly and competed for beauty, we can see that the readability, amiability, preciousness and appreciation of traditional calligraphy art have gradually moved towards the vulgar, charming, strange and hateful behavior process of performing arts, and calligraphy has gradually moved from the self-cultivation of national culture to the dilemma of social entertainment & HELIP; …
Therefore, we should stick to the aesthetic bottom line of China’s calligraphy, the reverence and piety of national culture, and the character and integrity of intellectuals in the new era, which requires us to look up to historical classics and safeguard the nobility and dignity of calligraphy culture. We should seek a reasonable fulcrum for the integration of tradition, times and individuality, purify and enhance the "sociality" and aesthetic height of national calligraphy, and carry forward China’s humanistic character of combining beauty and use with knowing and doing.
Today, when we rationally analyze the social ecology of contemporary calligraphy, we first need to return calligraphy as a national culture to the identification of social value system. There must be a threshold for understanding and expounding the artistic language of calligraphy, and non-calligraphy language cannot be tolerated. Without tradition, just as a nation loses its orthodoxy, its nationality and purity disappear; Without self-discipline, calligraphy language will have no rules of its own, and the art of calligraphy will inevitably be artificially distorted. Therefore, the relationship between calligraphy language and creators is temperature, strength and depth. Only by sticking to the bottom line can we win the height of social and cultural popularization in the times.
Tolerance and choice — — The aesthetic way of artistic creation in the times
In the new era, we advocate pluralism and tolerance. So, what is pluralism? Pluralism is not only the free expression of different views, but also the consensus among dissidents, the consensus on social core values, and the unanimous recognition of the rules of the game. Without the recognition of values and rules, pluralism will lead to the chaos and disintegration of the art world.
The emergence of pan-aestheticization has expanded the diversity of aesthetic forms. The beauty, sublimity and harmony of traditional classical aesthetics have been broken by the "contemporary art" introduced by the west. It dispels the standard of Chinese traditional aesthetics and subverts the cultural standpoint of traditional aesthetics. The works made by reproduction, technology, decoration and craft, with mass media as the main means, are filling the current cultural space and art market and supporting the increasingly secularized popular aesthetics.
The change of contemporary artistic concept also directly affects the purity and spirituality of traditional calligraphy art. From "contemplation" to "noise", from "aesthetics" to "appreciation of ugliness", from elegance to vulgarity, from simplicity to vulgarity … … This is the shadow of western postmodernism’s attitude towards traditional culture with historical nihilism, which has caused the growth of liberalism in the book world.
Postmodernism, as an irrational thinking, forces art to extend in the direction of alienating cultural values such as "canceling the subject without aesthetics", which dispels the original aesthetics and sublimity of artistic creation, confuses the differences between eastern and western cultures and blurs the public’s judgment standards on artistic aesthetics. In order to show the form, we deliberately ignore the quality, fade the quality, create novelty, attract the attention of the public with unconventional "arguments" and unconventional behaviors, and form a "landscape". Whether it is painting or even calligraphy, grotesque and disorder are the selling points, ugliness is the appeal, and mainstream values are the criterion, which can not but arouse high vigilance and reflection in the painting and calligraphy circles!
It is true that we should have a clear and clear appraisal of "ugly books". The "ugly book" we refer to here is a bad phenomenon that breaks away from the noumenon law of calligraphy art creation and the structural norms of Chinese characters, ignores the basic rules of calligraphy art such as brushwork, takes the pen as the body, gathers ink to form, is vulgar and vulgar, and is crazy about "creating new things". The "ugly book" referred to here should be distinguished from the "making risks" and "committing risks" in the artistic creation itself.
Generally speaking, artistic creation must be pursued from justice to danger, and then restored to justice. Liu Xizai’s "A Brief Introduction to Art" points out: "Learners begin by asking for work without work, and then ask for work without work. Those who don’t work are extremely hardworking." He also pointed out: "Common books are not for beauty, so they are ugly." It should be said that there are certain rules in the form composition and internal quality standard of the high realm of "work seeking not work" in art, and its visual space has a certain degree. "Not working" is not "ugly", but "creating risks".
There is no doubt that various cultural phenomena are inevitable in the interweaving of diverse and scattered social and cultural trends of thought, and there is no need to be puzzled or surprised, not to mention spreading hype or even infinitely magnifying it into "news events" through mass networks. We need to firmly allow some (or even several) calligraphers to make independent and innovative "artistic experiments" with an inclusive attitude, and the book world needs understanding and dialogue. These (few) calligraphers already have profound experience in traditional pen and ink skills and artistic creation. They have found a new way to prove new ideas and explore the "art of mind". Different people have different opinions, and the wise have different opinions, so they can be tested by practice.
Obviously, in the current social and cultural transformation in the context of globalization, how to maintain and reshape the identity of China’s calligraphy culture? This requires a choice based on tolerance. The temporality of art criticism has been deposited into three major anxieties, namely, concept anxiety, identity anxiety and reality anxiety. How to make the real "problem consciousness" show clear criticism? How to make theory reveal and guide contemporary artistic creation practice more directly and effectively? How to strengthen the function of literature and art to "educate and change customs" and correct the present situation of entertainment and marginalization of elite culture under the market economy? These are all urgent problems to be solved.
Today, 40 years after the reform and opening up, it is worthwhile for the calligraphy circle to further understand the cultural connotation of modernization, the traditional cultural complex of China in the process of modernization and the value orientation of China’s cultural development today. Five thousand years of Chinese culture tells us that the "core value" of culture is one of the most important reasons for the continuity of Chinese civilization. This core value is constantly changing, enriching and developing, and forms the core value of the culture of the times in the relative period. Forty years of reform and opening up, its core is to guide the society to establish a leading value, that is, to promote modern humanistic spirit. This requires the calligraphy circle to adhere to the global vision and localization practice. The construction of the aesthetic evaluation system of contemporary calligraphy creation is also the aesthetic basis of the classic works of the birth era. Facing the challenge of consumer culture, we should strive to enhance people’s aesthetic taste and promote the transformation of social aesthetics to elegance. We should consciously lead an aesthetic value judgment scale, summon the return of literary responsibility and lead the promotion of national spirit.
Cultural consciousness is the requirement of today’s times, which is a kind of aesthetic consciousness and mentality of cultural subject reflected in cultural reflection, cultural creation and cultural practice. As a calligraphy circle, the fundamental purpose of cultural consciousness is to strengthen the independent ability of cultural aesthetics and obtain an independent position to adapt to the cultural choice of the new era. We are in favor of such cultural consciousness — — Under the impact of the wave of globalization, it will never stick to the old ways and cling to the shortcomings, but keep pace with the times, actively fight, select the best and eliminate the bad, and advocate that all countries and nations in the world have symbiotic equal opportunities for culture and art and the tolerance of "beauty of beauty, beauty of beauty, harmony of beauty and harmony of the world". Calligraphy artists in this era especially need ideological nourishment and aesthetic purification. The times need calligraphy artists not to be eager for quick success and instant benefit, but to think about the deep-seated issues of contemporary culture and social aesthetics and the humanistic spirit of the times. Its essence is firstly the humanistic rationality in the contemporary aesthetic orientation and orientation of calligraphy art. As an important duty of aesthetic culture, calligraphy art is not to satisfy people’s recreational function of venting their senses, but to rise to the realm of free life, purify people’s souls and cultivate good daily quality. Therefore, today, every artist in the Republic of China should seriously reflect on his responsibility to society and mainstream culture. This is to rebuild the artistic evaluation and value system with national character and style of the times, and to create works of art with China style and China spirit.This is our strategic choice in the aesthetic way of artistic creation in the era of economic globalization and cultural diversification, which is also the cultural consciousness of contemporary calligraphy art!
What is the most lacking in the context of contemporary China calligraphy culture? Is to guide the society to establish a dominant value. We must clearly see the aesthetic transformation of contemporary calligraphy art, deepen our understanding of traditional techniques and classics, and expand the composition of artistic forms. This is the innovation that is good at organically integrating the characteristics of tradition, the characteristics of the times and the characteristics of individuality, that is, "bringing forth the old and bringing forth the new".
We are facing the "new era" of Internet media with such a huge audience and the commercial circle of citizen consumption culture with leisure and ridicule as the basic mode. The reality makes us awake: the most fundamental significance of art lies in the pursuit of non-utilitarian transcendental value. At present, the primary premise of our pursuit of classics is not to compromise the consumption culture of the market and not to succumb to the unequal value system manifested by money!
Philosophical thinking and activation — — Thoughts on carrying forward the spirit of Chinese aesthetic education
Every nation in the world has its own writing and culture, which shows the description of its national personality. Chinese characters are the representatives of Chinese national culture, the high materialization of China’s traditional philosophy, and the basic spirit of Chinese culture is condensed at the simplest level. Mr. Lin Yutang said: "In calligraphy, perhaps only in calligraphy can we see the perfection of Chinese’s artistic soul." We say that the artistic image created by Chinese calligraphy is not only the beauty of Wang Xizhi’s visit to Lanting, but also the pain of Yan Zhenqing’s desperate service to the country; Is it the confusion of Su Dongpo’s cold food in Huangzhou, or the combination of Sun Guoting’s books and essays … … It is an aesthetic state of human life and a life image of human philosophy. Calligraphy embodies the humanistic spirit of human self-care and pursues the ultimate realm of oriental aesthetic ideals. In the pursuit of human perfection and respect for people’s own value, calligraphy aesthetic education has led people to find a way.
The construction of the core value system of contemporary calligraphy must be based on the ontological law of calligraphy culture and the scientific understanding of social development, and leading the aesthetic direction of contemporary calligraphy fundamentally requires philosophical thinking.
For a long time, human beings have never stopped exploring the essence of beauty to awaken people’s most straightforward memories of world things. As a unique cultural memory of national spirit — — Calligraphy, what do we stick to today? Create what? This is the first question that calligraphers should answer. Regression is not a copy, and the beauty of tradition cannot invariably replace the pulse of today’s times! Artists who cannot enter "creative transformation and innovative development" will eventually become outcasts of the times. We say that philosophy is the "third wisdom" among science, art and philosophy. At present, the "symptomatic treatment" in the book circle needs "philosophical classics", and it needs China’s traditional philosophy to think about the times of contemporary philosophy, which gives birth to "wisdom scheme". This "wisdom" is a theorem and the "third wisdom" to reshape the oriental beauty, which indicates the strategic orientation of the aesthetic spirit of contemporary calligraphy.
After the evolution of Chinese characters’ calligraphy style, the aesthetics has also entered a period of cultural consciousness. Jin Shangyun, Tang Shangyi, Song Shangyi and Ming and Qing Dynasties are the aesthetic demands and artistic expansion in different historical stages, which are always developed around the core concept of the Chinese nation "the golden mean" in China’s calligraphy. The basic spirit of China’s calligraphy is as stated in the Book of Rites: "A gentleman respects virtue and asks for knowledge, which is broad and subtle, extremely clear and moderate". In view of this, the "golden mean", "moderate" and "extremely bright" have become the core concepts of China’s freehand brushwork spirit. Laozi’s "Tao is natural", Zhuangzi’s "only Tao gathers emptiness", Laozi’s "Xuan Jian" and Zhuangzi’s "Xin Zhai" and "Sit Forgetting" have become the "bulk" of China’s art for thousands of years. This "big book and large quantity" is the guide to pursue the aesthetic realm of calligraphy today. Taking the cursive script as an example, the tradition of taking calligraphy from the works of Wei and Jin dynasties, represented by the "two kings", constantly recombines its genes with the great culture of each period, forming an inexhaustible motive force for the continuous development of calligraphy, and its essence always presents constancy.Whether the style of calligraphy is simple, vigorous, cold, strange and vertical, or simple, elegant, harmonious and indifferent, it makes people understand that calligraphy must be rooted in tradition, and the classic "learning from ancient times" training process of calligraphy inscriptions is actually the tempering process of "people" as a member of society.
As the aesthetic consciousness of contemporary calligraphy art, perhaps we can put forward such a coordinate system — — Its vertical axis is to look at the future trend of China calligraphy from the combination of tradition and innovation, which is a time axis; Its horizontal axis is to find the aesthetic orientation of calligraphy art in the current globalization context and determine the significance of its existence in the times. This is a spatial axis. This is a cultural reflection on the artistic function of calligraphy, and an accurate grasp and inevitable choice of the law and characteristics of artistic development. It can be seen that the development of contemporary calligraphy will depend on the construction of aesthetic scientific evaluation system of calligraphy creation. The "science" here is not the "science" of natural science, but the "timeliness and appropriateness" in the philosophical sense, that is, the "golden mean" concept. The construction of this artistic standard and evaluation system must be rooted in the fertile soil of Chinese aesthetic spirit.
The Chinese aesthetic spirit is rooted in the life charm of national philosophy and the poetic tradition of national culture, and has established a Chinese aesthetic system with humanistic care as the core, great beauty as the field of vision, beautiful scenery and high interest as the purpose, focusing on the aesthetic spirit of blending truth, goodness and beauty.
The present is an era that needs philosophy, needs ideas, and will certainly produce ideas. There has long been a one-way thinking of binary opposition in China’s literary and art circles. In the past, literature and art were subordinate to politics and aesthetic thinking was replaced by political thinking; Now, under the condition of market economy, literature and art are subordinate to economy, and aesthetic thinking is replaced by profit thinking. This one-way thinking of aesthetics is morbid, and it is also manifested in the tendency to go one-sided and extreme in dealing with the cultural relationship between China and the West. As President Xi pointed out, some people respect foreign things, follow foreign things only and take foreign things as beauty, and are keen on de-China, de-ideology, de-value, de-historization and de-mainstreaming, and that set of "has absolutely no future". Similarly, it is useless to hold on to the historical heritage and dare not look far to absorb the excellent elements of world civilization.
Carrying forward the Chinese aesthetic spirit is a philosophical proposition, which is the foundation of the development direction of contemporary China art. Professor Zhang Shiying from the Department of Philosophy of Peking University put forward the original aesthetic theories of the times, such as "beauty points to the lofty" and "the sanctity of aesthetic feeling", which played a leading role in rectifying the kitsch and utilitarianism of literary and artistic creation in the tide of market economy. From traditional philosophy to contemporary comparative study of Chinese and Western cultures, Mr. Zhang put forward the concept of "the unity of things and everything" to "the connection of all things", which embodies the creative process from culture to life wisdom, connects Chinese and Western cultures, pays attention to reality and adapts to changes. It embodies that the task of aesthetics is to cultivate independent personality and transcendental spirit, and it is the study of "realm".
To carry forward the Chinese aesthetic spirit, we must grasp the following aspects from the perspective of contemporary philosophy: First, "harmony between man and nature" rather than "separation of subject and object", which is the basic spirit of China’s philosophy. The second is to treat Chinese and western art aesthetics with the thinking of the times of "all things are connected", and to clarify the significance of artistic imagination and emotional experience in aesthetic activities. "The highest task of philosophy is not to know the sameness, but to grasp the similarity." Aesthetics cannot be attached to science and alienated into technology. We must integrate the similarities and differences between Chinese and western cultures, and make sense of them, so as to devote ourselves to the cultural creation of the times. Contemporary aesthetics in China, which is in social transformation, should pay more attention to artistic aesthetic practice and pay attention to metaphysical philosophical ontology. Third, we must deepen our understanding of China’s ancient theory of "hidden show" (image theory) and the aesthetic tradition of implication. Pursue poetry and raise the realm of humanistic spirit. Beauty, in addition to paying attention to perceptual image and form, must also have a deeper connotation, which lies in the value of showing the highest meaning of life. This is the "sacredness" of Heidegger’s "clear realm". Therefore, "the sanctity of beauty" means that the beauty of lofty realm is the support of spiritual beauty, not the beauty of simple things and the beauty of entertaining people’s eyes and ears.
Carrying forward the guiding significance of Chinese aesthetic spirit in artistic practice: First, advocating both form and spirit, not just the supremacy of form. The cornerstone of Chinese aesthetic spirit is the connection between beauty and truth and goodness, and its core is the view of beauty with truth and goodness. Its ideal is the view of beauty with aloofness and lofty ideals, which advocates the aesthetic dimension with both content and form, and emphasizes the emotion, thought, character and mind of works. The second is to attach importance to the blending of reason and reason, and advocate implication and significance. The true beauty of art is the expression of true feelings and the prominence of personality. The freehand brushwork spirit of Chinese art is often not realistic, but a combination of reality and reality, with a lofty realm. The third is to highlight the beauty of life and carry forward the poetic character. The Chinese aesthetic spirit inherits the source of China’s philosophy, takes life as beauty, regards all things in the world as living beings, and advocates artistic life charm and poetic transcendence. It can be seen that Chinese aesthetic thoughts, theories and spirits have distinct national thinking and national theoretical signs. Chinese aesthetic spirit focuses on freehand brushwork. Beauty lies in the image, which breeds a series of aesthetic elements with national academic characteristics, including emotion, interest, environment, qi, rhyme, taste and taste.
In a letter to a professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, General Secretary of the Supreme Leader proposed to carry forward the spirit of Chinese aesthetic education. This is the root of the development direction of contemporary China art. From aesthetics to aesthetic education, this is a process from the ontological characteristics of things to social communication and development. The ultimate goal of aesthetic education is to make the society and the public enter a lofty spiritual realm, a realm where the public can realize their own meaning and value of life, and a common realm of unremitting struggle for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. This is the social responsibility shouldered by the vast number of literary and artistic workers in New China. The development of aesthetic education in an era is inseparable from the height of beauty spread by literary and artistic works created in this era. Therefore, to carry forward the spirit of Chinese aesthetic education today, we must follow the law of aesthetic education, be influenced by subtle beauty, and experience the fresh aesthetic activities of mass life in the new era, so that the whole people can improve their aesthetic quality, cultivate noble sentiments, shape a beautiful soul, stimulate innovative vitality and realize people’s all-round development.
Calligraphy art is historical, humanistic and contemporary. Everyone who loves China culture should, as Laozi said, "know what is normal and restore life" and "in the final analysis, be quiet" when facing the ancient writing art, taste of china culture and artistic creation immersed in aesthetic experience, that is, to return to the original state of life, to the normal state, to explore the ontological law of calligraphy art in the historical evolution with a normal heart and a pure thirst for knowledge, and to trace the spiritual essence, humanistic concept and historical contribution of calligraphy art from the source of China culture. We should have a modern humanistic feeling of being grateful for the times, perceiving people’s livelihood, fearing tradition and living faithfully. You know, today’s cultural creation is tomorrow’s historical legacy. In order to achieve this, we must keep the right and change, and pursue the aesthetic character and cultural characteristics of the oriental beauty of China’s calligraphy, which is the ultimate way of calligraphy aesthetic education!
Chinese traditional art has always advocated "change", which is what we call "innovation" today. "At the time of the meeting, people and books are old" in Book Score shows the importance of keeping the right and bringing forth the new. Change is to bring forth the new according to the law. This "new" is different from the style or genre of books. The "new" is a newborn born from the "ancient" mother, just like the blood relationship between mother and child has always been maintained. Keeping the right and changing is to follow the right path, the right pattern and the right pulse according to the artistic law. It is to restore calligraphy art to culture, seek truth from classics, lead in the direction, accumulate in the contemporary era, express the spiritual outlook and style of the contemporary people with pen and ink, and truly show the spiritual activities of the creators as a "meaningful form".
Yes, when we are moved by the nearly perfect creative skills of the classics of past dynasties, you will naturally try to explore its formal origin and cultural genes, and gradually touch the background and personality spirit of the calligrapher. Therefore, the change must go beyond the purely technical level and go straight to the artistic spirit level. At this time, the creator will get the creative spirit of incomparable freedom, thus making the work have a deep appeal of aesthetic meaning. Therefore, to keep the integrity and change, it must take the Chinese humanistic concept as the fundamental fulcrum, and it has profound cultural connotation from the technical system to the internal spirit. It is the guide to create collective personality values and modern lifestyles in the new era.
Socrates, the ancient Greek philosopher, said that "life without thinking is meaningless". Similarly, the so-called "formal innovation" and "artistic experience" that have not been tested by real time thinking and practice must be pale! Because "all human dignity lies in thought", the power of thought comes from that she is the cell of human belief. In the current growth environment of calligraphy art development, we must not ignore the phenomenon that "spiritual confusion" leads to "distortion of authenticity". Today, we inherit the spirit of Chinese aesthetic education, which is to continue the cultural lifeline of calligraphy itself, rather than to decorate the surface social life. Mr. Tsung i Jao’s philosophy of "never grinding one’s mind for ever, flowing freely in one’s heart" is precisely to clarify the philosophy of adapting to the situation and gaining the source of one’s heart. The creative spirit of contemporary calligraphy should not only "steal three points of pear flowers" from traditional classics, but more importantly "borrow a wisp of plum blossom soul". The spirit of China’s contemporary calligraphy aesthetic education is, on the one hand, the spirit of freehand brushwork contained in Chinese traditional philosophy, and on the other hand, it is a moving process of change. Its epochal nature can not only be confined to classical aesthetics, but also can not be derived from western modern aesthetic concepts. It is not a single pursuit of skills and the gradual change of formal beauty, but more from the aesthetic ideal, moral height and cultural value.Its spiritual core is a high degree of integration of advocating truth, goodness and beauty, which is a high degree of "people’s nature" in aesthetics. It should have a sense of national history, rich in national spirituality, national temperament and national language characteristics. It is the essence and soul of the collective aesthetic consciousness of the Chinese nation! A real artist’s aesthetic spirit lies in "integrating the past with me", and its artistic classicality must be the cultural creation of the times. Similarly, to carry forward the spirit of Chinese aesthetic education in the new era is to give full play to the unique advantages of art education, to enhance aesthetic quality in a strong cultural atmosphere, to innovate the vitality of techniques, and to realize the real and all-round development of students’ "sound personality" in the vivid practical experience of study and life.
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Some thoughts:
One reflection: Today, with the economic and social transformation, the generalization of social aesthetics of "national calligraphy" calls for the simultaneous construction of aesthetic ideals in China’s calligraphy era. How do we carry out "self-salvation" in our own cultural life and aesthetic pursuit?
Thinking 2: Restore art to culture and seek truth from classics. Contemporary calligraphy needs the construction of the aesthetic evaluation system of the times and a cultural consciousness based on value inheritance and value innovation.
Thinking 3: How to revitalize the excellent traditional art in the context of globalization? This requires the persistence of contemporary calligraphy culture and the reshaping of cultural identity.
Looking around the book world, we need to stick to, develop and create a pure home that belongs to the local area and the times. "There is no definite taste in the big chapter, and there is no definite song in the general chapter". There are no two identical leaves in the world, and people can’t stand on the same river. Although there are different artistic styles and schools, there is always only one noumenon spirit of contemporary China calligraphy.
Today, we can’t forget the original intention of starting to engage in calligraphy creation, research and education because of doubt, haste and competition of material status or fame. Looking at the disappearing back of the predecessors, we will really send out such a call from the bottom of our hearts — — What do we contribute to this era?
(About the author: Gongda Yan, Professor Tsinghua University. Doctoral tutor, national first-class artist, expert enjoying special allowance from the State Council. Member of the 11th and 12th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Vice Chairman of the 5th and 6th China Calligraphers Association, Member of the National Academy of Painting of China, Vice Chairman of the National Education Calligraphy and Painting Association and President of the Higher Calligraphy Education Branch. )
